Tenants facing eviction in Toronto Community Housing buildings need an advocate, says the retired judge, who pushed for one in 2010.

Retired justice Patrick LeSage is criticizing the Toronto Community Housing Corporation for not implementing some key recommendations of his 2010 report following the death of Al Gosling.

Speaking for the first time about city ombudsman Fiona Crean’s damning review of the TCHC last week, LeSage said he is sad to hear of yet another death following an eviction that could have been prevented.

“I’m saddened to know that that sort of thing could happen, and would happen again,” said LeSage, former chief justice of the Ontario Superior Court.

“The most disappointing thing is not that they didn’t follow my report,” he said. “What’s disappointing is situations I’d been concerned about and thought could be avoided, have occurred.

“People have been wrongfully evicted and the consequences can be severe, as we’ve seen. And that is very sad.”

Vulnerable social housing tenants facing eviction need an independent official to help them with rent arrears problems, says LeSage, who made creating such a position one of his recommendations after his inquiry into Gosling’s death. The 82-year-old TCHC tenant picked up an infection in a shelter following his eviction and later died.

Crean’s 109-page report on problems at the city housing agency, which will be presented to city council this week, found problems have continued with its evictions process long after the LeSage report.

LeSage said it appears TCHC ignored his recommendation to create a position called the Commissioner of Housing Equity.

The commissioner would be there to help settle arrears problems, short of eviction, and in the process link tenants to community supports to assist them.

“They have to put in a structure that will prevent needless evictions,” LeSage said. “I think if they had someone like that, people certainly would not be wrongfully evicted.”

It’s critical that TCHC meet face-to-face with a tenant in arrears rather than rely on sending intimidating, potentially confusing letters, LeSage said in his report.

While TCHC had defined letter writing as “direct contact,” LeSage said it must involve at least a phone call and preferably a visit. He added that both parties would benefit.

“Personal contact will often provide an opportunity to rectify the situation, or at the very least, help both parties to move forward,” he said in his 90-page report.

“Sending notices terrifies people,” he said. “It’s like bad news: when someone is listening to news they don’t like, they turn it off. That’s what we do. We think of it as self-preservation, but it’s the exact opposite.”

A tenant couldn’t ignore a knock on the door, he said, and that just might open up a dialogue leading to a solution.

“It’s not rocket science. You have to be able to meet with the person face-to-face and discuss it. You’ll often discover it’s a problem that can be resolved.”

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